Bixi Turtle
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Bixi, or Bi Xi (), is a figure from
Chinese mythology Chinese mythology () is mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature throughout the area now known as Greater China. Chinese mythology encompasses a diverse array of myths derived from regional and cultural tradit ...
. One of the nine sons of the
Dragon King The Dragon King, also known as the Dragon God, is a Chinese water and weather god. He is regarded as the dispenser of rain, commanding over all bodies of water. He is the collective personification of the ancient concept of the '' lóng'' in ...
, he is depicted as a
dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...
with the shell of a
turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...
. Stone
sculptures Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
of Bixi have been used in
Chinese culture Chinese culture () is one of the Cradle of civilization#Ancient China, world's earliest cultures, said to originate five thousand years ago. The culture prevails across a large geographical region in East Asia called the Sinosphere as a whole ...
for centuries as a decorative
plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...
for commemorative
stele A stele ( ) or stela ( )The plural in English is sometimes stelai ( ) based on direct transliteration of the Greek, sometimes stelae or stelæ ( ) based on the inflection of Greek nouns in Latin, and sometimes anglicized to steles ( ) or stela ...
s and tablets, particularly in the funerary complexes of its later
emperors The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/ grand empress dowager), or a woman who rule ...
and to commemorate important events, such as an imperial visit or the anniversary of a
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
victory. They are also used at the bases of bridges and archways. Sculptures of Bixi are traditionally rubbed for good luck, which can cause conservation issues. They can be found throughout
East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...
and the
Russian Far East The Russian Far East ( rus, Дальний Восток России, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in North Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asia, Asian continent, and is coextensive with the Far Easte ...
.


History

The tradition of tortoise-mounted stelae originated no later than early 3rd century (late
Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...
). According to the 1957 survey by Chêng Tê-k'un (), the earliest extant tortoise-borne stele is thought to be the one at the tomb of Fan Min (), in Lushan County,
Ya'an Ya'an ( zh, s=雅安, p=Yǎ'ān, w=Ya-an) is a prefecture-level city in the western part of Sichuan province, China, located just below the Tibetan Plateau. The city is home to Sichuan Agricultural University, the only Project 211, 211 Project ...
,
Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...
.
Victor Segalen Victor Segalen (14 January 1878 – 21 May 1919) was a French naval doctor, ethnographer, archeologist, writer, poet, explorer, art-theorist, linguist and literary critic. He was born in Brest. He studied medicine and graduated at the Nav ...
had earlier identified the stele as a
Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...
monument. Present-day authors agree, usually giving it the date of 205 AD. The stele has a rounded top with a dragon design in
low relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...
- a precursor to the "two intertwined dragons" design that was very common on such steles even in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, over a thousand years later. In the collection of the
Nanjing Museum The Nanjing Museum () is located in Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu in East China. With an area of , it is one of the largest museums in China, with over 400,000 items in its permanent collection. Especially notable is the museum's enormous col ...
there is a ''
hunping The ''hunping'' (), translated as soul jar or soul vase, is a type of ceramic funerary urn often found in the tombs of the Han dynasty and especially the Six Dynasties periods of early imperial China. It was characteristic of the Jiangnan reg ...
'' funerary jar, dating to 272 AD, with a miniature architectural composition on top, depicting, among other objects, a tortoise carrying a stele erected by the
Jin dynasty Jin may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) ...
governor of
Changsha Changsha is the capital of Hunan, China. It is the 15th most populous city in China with a population of 10,513,100, the Central China#Cities with urban area over one million in population, third-most populous city in Central China, and the ...
in honor of a local dignitary. Perhaps the best known extant early example of the genre is the set of four stele-bearing tortoises at the mausoleum of
Xiao Xiu Xiao Xiu (), formally Prince Kang of Ancheng ( (475–518), was a younger half-brother of Xiao Yan (Emperor Wu), the founder of the Liang dynasty of China. According to the '' Book of Liang'', he was the 7th son of Xiao Yan's father Xiao Shunzhi. ...
(475-518), who was the younger brother of the first
Liang dynasty The Liang dynasty (), alternatively known as the Southern Liang () or Xiao Liang () in historiography, was an imperial dynasty of China and the third of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period. It was pre ...
emperor Wu (Xiao Yan), near
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
. The ''bixi'' tradition flourished during the
Ming The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of China ruled by the Han people, t ...
and
Qing dynasties The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
. The Ming founder, the
Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328– 24 June 1398), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Ming, personal name Zhu Yuanzhang, courtesy name Guorui, was the List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, founding emperor of the Ming dyna ...
, in the first year after the dynasty had been proclaimed (1368), adopted regulations, allowing tortoise-based funerary tablets to the higher ranks of the
nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...
and the mandarinate. He tightened the rules in 1396, leaving only the highest nobility (those of the ''gong'' and ''hou'' ranks) and the officials of the top 3 ranks eligible for ''bixi''-based stelae. The type of
dragons A dragon is a magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in Western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depict ...
crowning the tortoise-born stele, and the type and number of other statuary at the tomb site, were prescribed by the same regulations as well.. At the Hongwu Emperor's own mausoleum, a huge ''bixi'' holding the so-called ''Shengde'' stele welcomes visitors at the Sifangcheng pavilion at the entrance of the mausoleum complex. Three centuries later (1699), the
Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 165420 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, personal name Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign of 61 ...
of the Qing dynasty visited Nanjing and contributed another tortoise, with a stele praising the founder of the Ming, comparing him to the founders of the great Tang and Song dynasties of the past. Quote regarding the Kangxi's stele text and its meaning: ")"; regarding the dimensions of the stele and its tortoise: "" The Hongwu Emperor's tortoise tradition was continued by the later Ming and Qing emperors, whose mausoleums are usually decorated by ''bixi''-born steles as well. Even the self-declared emperor
Yuan Shikai Yuan Shikai (; 16 September 18596 June 1916) was a Chinese general and statesman who served as the second provisional president and the first official president of the Republic of China, head of the Beiyang government from 1912 to 1916 and ...
was posthumously honored with a ''bixi''-based stele in
Anyang Anyang ( zh, s=安阳, t=安陽; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan, China. Geographical coordinates are 35° 41'~ 36° 21' north latitude and 113° 38'~ 114° 59' east longitude. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the eas ...
, as was the
Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
Premier
Tan Yankai Tan Yankai (; ; 25 January 1880 – 22 September 1930) was a Chinese politician who briefly served as its head of state and premier. Biography Tan Yankai was born on 25 January 1880 in Hangzhou during the waning decades of the Qing dynasty. ...
(1880–1930), whose stele near
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
's
Linggu Temple Linggu Temple () is a famous Buddhist temple in Nanjing. It is now surrounded by a large park. History The temple was first built in 515 during the Liang dynasty (502-557). It used to lie at the northeast foot of the Purple Mountain, i.e. whe ...
had its inscription erased after the Communist Revolution. Occasionally, a foreign head of state was honored with a ''bixi'' as well, as it happened to the sultan of
Brunei Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...
Abdul Majid Hassan Abdul Majid Hassan ibni Muhammad Shah ( Jawi: ), also known as Maharaja Karna (), was the second sultan of Brunei from 1402 until his death in 1408, albeit allegedly. He became one of the only two foreign rulers to be buried in China. Despite ...
, who died during his visit to China in 1408. The sultan's grave, with a suitably royal ''bixi''-based monument, was discovered in Yuhuatai District south of
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
in 1958. After an ancient Christian stele was unearthed in
Xi'an Xi'an is the list of capitals in China, capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong plain, the city is the third-most populous city in Western China after Chongqing and Chengdu, as well as the most populou ...
in 1625, it, too, was put on the back of a tortoise. In 1907, this so-called
Xi'an Stele The Xi'an Stele or the Stele ( zh, c=景教碑, p= Jǐngjiào bēi), sometimes translated as the "Nestorian Stele," is a Tang Chinese stele erected in 781 that documents 150 years of early Christianity in China. It is a limestone block high wit ...
was moved to the
Stele Forest The Stele Forest or Beilin Museum is a museum for steles and stone sculptures in Beilin District in Xi'an, Northwest China. The museum, which is housed in a former Confucian Temple, has housed a growing collection of Steles since 1087. By 1 ...
Museum along with its tortoise. These days, long-lost bixi continue to be unearthed during archaeological excavations and construction work. Among the most remarkable finds is the discovery of a huge 1200-year-old one in
Zhengding Zhengding (), originally Zhending (), is a county in southwestern Hebei Province, North China, located approximately south of Beijing, capital of China. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Shijiazhuang, the capital of t ...
(
Hebei Hebei is a Provinces of China, province in North China. It is China's List of Chinese administrative divisions by population, sixth-most populous province, with a population of over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. It bor ...
Province) in June 2006. The stone turtle is 8.4 m long, 3.2 m wide, and 2.6 m tall, and weighs 107 tons. It has since been moved to Zhengding's Kaiyuan Temple.


Outside China

The concept of a tortoise-borne, dragon-crowned stele was adopted early by China's northern neighbors. The earliest extant monument of the Turkic Kaganate - the so-called " Bugut Stele" of the late 6th century from
Arkhangai Province Arkhangai Province () is one of the 21 provinces of Mongolia. It is located slightly west of the country's center, on the northern slopes of the Khangai Mountains. It is composed of 19 districts. History The province was founded in 1931. Admi ...
in western
Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
with a Sogdian and (most likely) Brahmi Mongolic inscription was installed on a stone tortoise. It is now in the provincial capital,
Tsetserleg Tsetserleg (, ''garden'') may signify: * Tsetserleg (city), the capital of Arkhangai aimag in Mongolia * two sums (districts) in different aimags of Mongolia: ** Tsetserleg, Arkhangai ** Tsetserleg, Khövsgöl {{disambig ...
. According to the Turkish researcher Cengiz Alyilmaz, it was the design of this stele that influenced the builders of the important 8th-century stelae with
Old Turkic Old Siberian Turkic, generally known as East Old Turkic and often shortened to Old Turkic, was a Siberian Turkic language spoken around East Turkistan and Mongolia. It was first discovered in inscriptions originating from the Second Turkic Kh ...
inscriptions, many of which also stood on tortoises. Among them, the most accessible one is probably
Bayanchur Khan Mo-yun Chur (磨延啜) (b. 713 - d.759) or Eletmish Bilge Qaghan was second qaghan of Uyghur Khaganate. His Tang dynasty invested title was Yingwu Weiyuan Pijia Qaghan () or simply Yingwu Qaghan (). He was also known as Gelei Qaghan (). His offi ...
's (Eletmish Bilge Kağan)'s Terhin-Gol stele (753 AD), now in the Mongolian Academy of Sciences in
Ulan Bator Ulaanbaatar is the capital and most populous city of Mongolia. It has a population of 1.6 million, and it is the coldest capital city in the world by average yearly temperature. The municipality is located in north central Mongolia at an ...
. Later, the Jurchen
Jin dynasty (1115-1234) Jin may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) ...
and the
Mongol Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China (Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family of M ...
Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...
erected tortoise-based monuments as well, some of which have been preserved in Russia's
Ussuriysk Ussuriysk () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Primorsky Krai, Russia, in the valley of the Razdolnaya River. The city is north of Vladivostok, the administrative center of the krai, and about from both the China–Russia bo ...
and Mongolia's
Karakorum Karakorum (Khalkha Mongolian: Хархорум, ''Kharkhorum''; Mongolian script:, ''Qaraqorum'') was the capital city, capital of the Mongol Empire between 1235 and 1260 and of the Northern Yuan, Northern Yuan dynasty in the late 14th and 1 ...
. In Japan, this form of tortoise-supported stele is found primarily at the graves of prominent
Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...
(1185–1333) figures, especially in the city of
Kamakura , officially , is a city of Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. It is located in the Kanto region on the island of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 people per km2 over the tota ...
. Another large collection of tortoise-borne stelae, spanning the 17th through 19th centuries, can be seen at the cemetery of the
Tottori Domain 270px, Ikeda Yoshinori 270px, Front gate of the Tottori Domain residence in Edo was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, in what is now Tottori Prefecture on the island of Honshu. It controlled all of Inaba Prov ...
''
daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...
'' outside Tottori. Otherwise, the form does not seem to have been particularly popular in earlier or later times. In Korea, tortoise-borne stelae are known during the
Three Kingdoms of Korea The Three Kingdoms of Korea or Samhan (Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla) competed for hegemony over the Korea, Korean Peninsula during the ancient period of History of Korea, Korean history. During the Three Kingdoms period (), many states and statele ...
period (e.g., the Tombstone of King
Muyeol of Silla King Taejong Muyeol (603–661), born Kim Ch'un-ch'u, was the List of monarchs of Korea, 29th ruler of Silla, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He is credited for leading the unification of Korea's Three Kingdoms. Background King Taejong Muy ...
, erected 661). Monuments of this type have been preserved from the later
Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean state founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korea, Korean Peninsula until the establishment of Joseon in 1392. Goryeo achieved what has b ...
dynasty as well, such as the Stele of Bongseon Honggyeongsa (1026). Vietnam also has a long tradition of tortoise-born stelae, where they commemorate Emperor
Lê Thái Tổ Le is a romanization of several rare East Asian surnames and a common Vietnamese surname. It is a fairly common surname in the United States, ranked 975th during the 1990 census and 368th during the 2000 census. In 2000, it was the eighth-most-co ...
as well as the graduates of the Confucian academy at Hanoi's Temple of Literature. While there is no indigenous tradition of erecting stelae on tortoise-shaped pedestals in the United States, a Qing period ''bixi'' can be seen on the campus of
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
in
Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...
. This bixi was given as a gift to Harvard in 1936 by the members of Harvard Clubs in China; an appropriate text was carved for the occasion on the tablet carried by the tortoise.


Development as an art form

According to
Victor Segalen Victor Segalen (14 January 1878 – 21 May 1919) was a French naval doctor, ethnographer, archeologist, writer, poet, explorer, art-theorist, linguist and literary critic. He was born in Brest. He studied medicine and graduated at the Nav ...
's assessment, the early ( Han and the
Six Dynasties Six Dynasties (; 220–589 or 222–589) is a collective term for six Han-ruled Chinese dynasties that existed from the early 3rd century AD to the late 6th century AD, between the end of the Eastern Han dynasty and the beginning of the Sui ...
) stone tortoises were artistic images of quite real aquatic turtles. The creatures looked quite realistic through the
Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...
, when huge tortoise pedestals, such as the ones in
Shou Qiu Shou Qiu () is a historical site on the eastern outskirts of the city of Qufu in Shandong Province, China. According to the legend, Shou Qiu is the birthplace of the Yellow Emperor. Shou Qiu itself is today marked only by a pyramidal monument, ...
near
Qufu Qufu ( ; zh, c=曲阜) is a county-level city in southwestern Shandong province, East China. It is located about south of the provincial capital Jinan and northeast of the prefectural seat at Jining. Qufu has an area of 815 square kilometers, ...
, or the one in
Dai Miao Mount Tai () is a mountain of historical and cultural significance located north of the city of Tai'an. It is the highest point in Shandong province, China. The tallest peak is the ''Jade Emperor Peak'' (), which is commonly reported as being ta ...
at
Mount Tai Mount Tai () is a mountain of historical and cultural significance located north of the city of Tai'an. It is the highest point in Shandong province, China. The tallest peak is the ''Jade Emperor Peak'' (), which is commonly reported as being t ...
, were erected. The early-Ming specimens, while still definitely
chelonian Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked turtles), ...
, had sprouted small ears; the sides of their heads and their
carapace A carapace is a dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the unde ...
s are often decorated by a leaf-like design. They usually have prominent teeth, which real-life turtles don't. By the mid-
Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
(the 18th century), however, the stele-bearing tortoise becomes the characteristic
dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...
-headed ''bixi''. File:Segalen-39-Xiao-Xiu-Tortoise-and-column.jpg,
Xiao Xiu Xiao Xiu (), formally Prince Kang of Ancheng ( (475–518), was a younger half-brother of Xiao Yan (Emperor Wu), the founder of the Liang dynasty of China. According to the '' Book of Liang'', he was the 7th son of Xiao Yan's father Xiao Shunzhi. ...
mausoleum,
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
,
Liang dynasty The Liang dynasty (), alternatively known as the Southern Liang () or Xiao Liang () in historiography, was an imperial dynasty of China and the third of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period. It was pre ...
, ca. 518. Photo by
Victor Segalen Victor Segalen (14 January 1878 – 21 May 1919) was a French naval doctor, ethnographer, archeologist, writer, poet, explorer, art-theorist, linguist and literary critic. He was born in Brest. He studied medicine and graduated at the Nav ...
File:Khabarovsk stone tortoise.JPG, Tortoise from the grave of the Jurchen general Asikui. Originally near
Ussuriysk Ussuriysk () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Primorsky Krai, Russia, in the valley of the Razdolnaya River. The city is north of Vladivostok, the administrative center of the krai, and about from both the China–Russia bo ...
, now in
Khabarovsk Khabarovsk ( ) is the largest city and the administrative centre of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia,Law #109 located from the China–Russia border, at the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri Rivers, about north of Vladivostok. As of the 2021 Russian c ...
Museum.
Jin dynasty (1115-1234) Jin may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) ...
File:Ussuriysk-Stone-Tortoise-S-3542.jpg,
Ussuriysk Ussuriysk () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Primorsky Krai, Russia, in the valley of the Razdolnaya River. The city is north of Vladivostok, the administrative center of the krai, and about from both the China–Russia bo ...
,
Jin dynasty (1115-1234) Jin may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) ...
File:Karakorum - Tortue Sud.jpg,
Karakorum Karakorum (Khalkha Mongolian: Хархорум, ''Kharkhorum''; Mongolian script:, ''Qaraqorum'') was the capital city, capital of the Mongol Empire between 1235 and 1260 and of the Northern Yuan, Northern Yuan dynasty in the late 14th and 1 ...
ruins,
Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...
(13th century) File:Stone Sifangcheng.jpg, The
Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328– 24 June 1398), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Ming, personal name Zhu Yuanzhang, courtesy name Guorui, was the List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, founding emperor of the Ming dyna ...
's
mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type o ...
,
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
, ca. 1400 File:Linggu-Stone-Tortoise-2901.jpg, Near
Linggu Temple Linggu Temple () is a famous Buddhist temple in Nanjing. It is now surrounded by a large park. History The temple was first built in 515 during the Liang dynasty (502-557). It used to lie at the northeast foot of the Purple Mountain, i.e. whe ...
, Nanjing,
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
File:Kangxi-Lugou-rebuilding-stele-3581.jpg, Stele in honor of the rebuilding of the
Marco Polo Bridge The Marco Polo Bridge or Lugou Bridge () is a stone bridge located 15 km southwest of Beijing's city center in the Fengtai District. It bridges the Yongding River, a major tributary of Hai River. Situated at the eastern end of the bridge ...
by the
Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 165420 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, personal name Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign of 61 ...
, Beijing, 1668 File:Nanjing-Drum-Tower-Kangxi-stele-3042.jpg, Drum Tower,
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
. Commemorates visit by the Kangxi Emperor, 1684 File:MingXiaoling ZLTS01 rotated.jpg, The Kangxi Emperor's stele at
Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum The Ming Xiaoling () is the mausoleum of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming dynasty. It lies at the southern foot of Purple Mountain, located east of the historical centre of Nanjing. The legend says that in order to prevent robbery of th ...
, Nanjing 1699 File:LugouQiao-Qianlong-bridge-rebuilding-stele-3610.JPG, The
Qianlong Emperor The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, personal name Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of China, emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China pr ...
's
Marco Polo Bridge The Marco Polo Bridge or Lugou Bridge () is a stone bridge located 15 km southwest of Beijing's city center in the Fengtai District. It bridges the Yongding River, a major tributary of Hai River. Situated at the eastern end of the bridge ...
rebuilding stele, Beijing, 1785 File:Linggu-Shensong-Bixi-2911.jpg,
Tan Yankai Tan Yankai (; ; 25 January 1880 – 22 September 1930) was a Chinese politician who briefly served as its head of state and premier. Biography Tan Yankai was born on 25 January 1880 in Hangzhou during the waning decades of the Qing dynasty. ...
tomb, near
Linggu Temple Linggu Temple () is a famous Buddhist temple in Nanjing. It is now surrounded by a large park. History The temple was first built in 515 during the Liang dynasty (502-557). It used to lie at the northeast foot of the Purple Mountain, i.e. whe ...
, Nanjing, ca. 1930 File:Minzu-zhengqi-haoran-changcun-Bixi-3563.jpg,
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
monument in Wanping Castle,
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
, 1995 File:Graves of Shimazu Tadahisa and Mori Suemitsu, Kamakura.jpg, Gravesites of
samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...
Shimazu Tadahisa was the founder of the Shimazu samurai clan. Life Tadahisa was a son of the Shōgun Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147–1199) by the sister of Hiki Yoshikazu. According to a record of his life, he was reportedly born in Sumiyoshi Taisha in Osaka. ...
(d. 1227) and
Mōri Suemitsu was a samurai during the Kamakura period and a ''gokenin'' of the Kamakura shogunate. He was the fourth son of Ōe no Hiromoto. He was the founder of the Mōri clan. He served three generations of the army of Minamoto no Sanetomo at Tsurugao ...
(1202-1247), the founders of the Shimazu and
Mōri clan The was a Japanese clan, Japanese samurai clan descended from Ōe no Hiromoto. Ōe no Hiromoto was descended from the Fujiwara clan. The family's most illustrious member, Mōri Motonari, greatly expanded the clan's power in Aki Province. Durin ...
s respectively,
Kamakura , officially , is a city of Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. It is located in the Kanto region on the island of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 people per km2 over the tota ...
,
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
. File:Bixi in Harvard University - IMG 8960.JPG, The
Harvard Bixi The Harvard Bixi (tortoise), Bixi is a 17-foot high, 27 ton Chinese marble stele with a turtle pedestal located at Harvard University, north of Boylston Hall and west of Widener Library in Harvard Yard, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The stele ...
in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
was produced in China in the 18th century. File:Bixi Lingyin.jpg, The ''bixi'' at
Lingyin Temple Lingyin Temple () is a prominent Chan Buddhist temple near Hangzhou that is renowned for its many pagodas and grottos. Its name is commonly and literally translated into English as Temple of the Soul's Retreat. The monastery is the largest ...
,
Hangzhou Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...
, with the characters "Lingyin" () written on the stele.
According to some 19th-century western authors, the Chinese tradition of using a tortoise as a pedestal may have a common source with the Indian legend of the world being held up by a giant turtle.


Name

The word ''bi'' or ''bixi'' (also written with a variant character, ) is translated by Chinese dictionaries as "strong", "capable to support great weight". The word ''bixi'' is attested already in
Zhang Heng Zhang Heng (; AD 78–139), formerly romanization of Chinese, romanized Chang Heng, was a Chinese polymathic scientist and statesman who lived during the Han dynasty#Eastern Han (25–220 AD), Eastern Han dynasty. Educated in the capital citi ...
's (78-139) "Western Metropolis Rhapsody" (''Xi Jing Fu''), which mentions "the great strides" of the giant divine ''bixi''. Zhang Heng's follower,
Zuo Si Zuo Si (; 250–305), courtesy name Taichong (), was a Chinese writer and poet who lived in the Western Jin dynasty. Biography Zuo was born to an aristocratic family of Confucian scholars in Linzi. His mother died young. His father, Zuo Yong, ...
(250–305), in his '' Wu
Capital Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...
Rhapsody'' (''Wu Jing Fu''), explicitly associates the attribute ''bixi'' with the legendary giant turtle '' ao'', whose head supports a sacred mountain. The term ''bixi'' became associated with the stele-carrying tortoises no later than the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
. The terminology, however, did not immediately become stable. The earliest known Ming-era list of fantastic creatures appearing in architecture and applied art is given by
Lu Rong Lu Rong (; 1436–1494) was a Chinese scholar. He is also known under the courtesy name Wenliang (文量) and the pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs fro ...
(1436–1494) in his ''Miscellaneous records from the bean garden'' (, ''Shuyuan zaji''). The ''bixi'', with the syllables swapped (, ''xibi''), appears in the first position in that list:
The ''xibi'' looks like a tortoise. By its nature it likes to carry heavy weights. It used to be employed to support stone tablets.
Lu Rong claims that his list (including the total of 14 creatures) is based on the ancient books of beasts and supernatural creatures, the ''
Shan Hai Jing The ''Classic of Mountains and Seas'', also known as ''Shanhai jing'' (), formerly romanized as the ''Shan-hai Ching'', is a Chinese classic text and a compilation of mythic geography and beasts. Early versions of the text may have existed si ...
'' and the ''Bo Wu Zhi'' (); however, as the modern researchers Yang Jingrong and Liu Zhixiong note, that is not the case, and the names, much more likely, were taken by Lu Rong from the folklore of his time. Yang Jingrong and Liu Zhixiong (2008) Soon after Lu Rong, the mighty tablet-carrying tortoise appears in various lists of the " Nine children of the Dragons", compiled by several Ming authors. However, both Li Dongyang (1441–1516), in his ''Huai Lu Tang Ji,'' and Xie Zhaozhe (, 1567–1624), in his ''Wu Za Zu'' (, ''Five Assorted Offerings'', ca. 1592), refer to the tortoise that carries the stele by the name ''baxia'' (), rather than ''bixi''; at the same time they apply the name ''bixi'' to the "literature-loving" dragons that appear on the sides of the stele:
The ''baxia'' has an innate love for carrying weights; the creature now under tablets is its image. ... The ''bixi'' has an innate love for literature; the dragons now on the sides of tablets are its image.
The name ''bixi'', however, is given to the table-carrying tortoise in the more popular version of the list of the "Nine Children of the Dragon". In this form of the list, given e.g. by
Yang Shen Yang Shen (; 1488–1559) was a poet in the Chinese Ming dynasty. His courtesy name was Yongxiu (); his art names included Sheng'an (), Bonan Shanren () and Diannan Shushi (). Yang Shen was the son of Yang Tinghe and originally lived in Chengd ...
(1488–1559), the ''bixi'' is given the first position:
The ''bixi'' looks like a tortoise, and likes to carry heavy weights; is the tortoise-carrier (''guifu'') now under stone tablets.


Stone tortoises in art and popular lore

It is said that an old legend of the stone tortoise made by
Lu Ban Lu Ban (–444BC). was a Chinese architect or master carpenter, structural engineer, and inventor, during the Zhou Dynasty. He is revered as the Chinese Deity (Patron) of builders and contractors. Life Lu Ban was born in the state of Lu; a fe ...
that went to swim in the ocean every summer, and came back to its seaside hill in the fall, inspired Lu Ji's lines:. The legend, and the reference to Lu Ji, comes from the book ''Shu Yi Ji'' (, "Extraordinary stories"), commonly ascribed to Ren Fang (460—508). The story from the tortoise from a seaside hill (), as well as the one about another sea-going stone turtle from
Linyi Linyi ( zh, s=临沂 , t=臨沂 , p=Línyí) is a prefecture-level city in the south of Shandong province, China. As of 2011, Linyi is the largest prefecture-level city in Shandong, both by area and population, Linyi borders Rizhao to the eas ...
County (), and their translations to
Modern Standard Mandarin Standard Chinese ( zh, s=现代标准汉语, t=現代標準漢語, p=Xiàndài biāozhǔn hànyǔ, l=modern standard Han speech) is a modern standard form of Mandarin Chinese that was first codified during the republican era (1912–1949). ...
, can be found at .
The opening chapter of the 14th-century novel ''
Water Margin ''Water Margin'' (), also called ''Outlaws of the Marsh'' or ''All Men Are Brothers'', is a Chinese novel from the Ming dynasty that is one of the preeminent Classic Chinese Novels. Attributed to Shi Nai'an, ''Water Margin'' was one of the e ...
'' involves Marshal Hong releasing 108 spirits imprisoned under an ancient stele-bearing tortoise. A ''bixi'' plays a key role in a ghost story, "The Spirit of the Stone Tortoise" (, ''Bixi jing''), from
Yuan Mei Yuan Mei (; 1716–1797) was a Chinese poet of the Qing dynasty. He was often mentioned with Ji Yun as the "Nan Yuan Bei Ji" (). Biography Early life Yuan Mei was born in Qiantang (, in modern Hangzhou), Zhejiang province, to a cultured famil ...
's (1716–1797) collection '' What the Master Does Not Speak Of''. The French poet and researcher
Victor Segalen Victor Segalen (14 January 1878 – 21 May 1919) was a French naval doctor, ethnographer, archeologist, writer, poet, explorer, art-theorist, linguist and literary critic. He was born in Brest. He studied medicine and graduated at the Nav ...
(1878–1919), who published both a scholarly book about China's stelae and a book of poetry-in-prose about them, was also impressed by the "truly emblematic" stone tortoises, their "firm gestures and
elegiac The adjective ''elegiac'' has two possible meanings. First, it can refer to something of, relating to, or involving, an elegy or something that expresses similar mournfulness or sorrow. Second, it can refer more specifically to poetry composed in ...
posture". Today, the image of the ''bixi'' continues to inspire modern Chinese artists.


Preservation concerns

As with other stone (particularly, marble and limestone) statuary, ''bixi'' turtles and their stelae are vulnerable to
acid rain Acid rain is rain or any other form of Precipitation (meteorology), precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it has elevated levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). Most water, including drinking water, has a neutral pH that exists b ...
(or, in winter, acid snow). On the Harvard University campus, the curators of its turtle protect it against "acid snow" by wrapping it with a waterproof cover for the winter. A more ''bixi''-specific concern is the wear to the creatures' noses from the people who touch them for good luck. At Hanoi's Temple of Literature, highly popular with visitors, this has become a sufficient concern to the site's managers as to make them develop plans for introducing creative landscaping and structural obstacles to keep visitors from touching the temple's 82 stone turtles.The custom of rubbing ''bixi'' for good luck (or protection from bad luck) is attested in:


See also

*
Chinese dragon The Chinese dragon or loong is a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and Chinese culture generally. Chinese dragons have many animal-like forms, such as Bixi (mythology), turtles and Chiwen, fish, but are most commonly ...
* Turtle-shell tombs


Notes


References

* (Posthumous publication, based on research done in 1909–1917) * Includes Segalen's original text and the English translation Timothy James Billings and Christopher Bush. The original was published in 1912; its text can be also found at http://www.steles.net/ *
Section 1
.


External links

* Tortoise stelae in the Temples of Confucius and Yan Hui in Qufu—Twenty-five ''bixi'' from the
Temple of Confucius A temple of Confucius or Confucian temple is a temple for the veneration of Confucius and the sages and philosophers of Confucianism in Chinese folk religion and other East Asian religions. They were formerly the site of the administration of ...
and
Temple of Yan Hui The Temple of Yan Hui, commonly known as simply the Temple of Yan or Yan Temple (), is a temple in Qufu, Jining, Shandong, China, dedicated to Yan Hui (521-490 BC), the favorite disciples of Confucius, disciple of Confucius. Location and layout ...
in Qufu, from five dynasties, from
Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...
to
Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
.
Stele on the Back of Stone Tortoise
(an overview of the ''Bixi'' tradition) {{Chinese mythology Animals in art Chinese architectural history Chinese dragons Chinese iconography Chinese legendary creatures Chinese sculpture Mythological and legendary Chinese turtles